Stormlands Read online

  Stormlands

  Koby E. Hill

  Bluesource And Friends

  This book is brought to you by Bluesource And Friends, a happy book publishing company.

  Our motto is “Happiness Within Pages”

  We promise to deliver amazing value to readers with our books.

  We also appreciate honest book reviews from our readers.

  Connect with us on our Facebook page www.facebook.com/bluesourceandfriends and stay tuned to our latest book promotions and free giveaways.

  Don’t forget to claim your FREE books!

  Brain Teasers:

  https://tinyurl.com/karenbrainteasers

  Harry Potter Trivia:

  https://tinyurl.com/wizardworldtrivia

  Sherlock Puzzle Book (Volume 2)

  https://tinyurl.com/Sherlockpuzzlebook2

  Also check out our other books

  “67 Lateral Thinking Puzzles”

  https://tinyurl.com/thinkingandriddles

  “Rookstorm Online Saga”

  https://tinyurl.com/rookstorm

  “Korman’s Prayer”

  https://tinyurl.com/kormanprayer

  “The Convergence”

  https://tinyurl.com/bloodcavefiction

  “The Hardest Sudokos In Existence (Ranked As The Hardest Sudoku Collection Available In The Western World)”

  https://tinyurl.com/MasakiSudoku

  Rookstorm Online Book 1: New Game Adventure (LitRPG Series)

  What would you do if you were trapped inside the most anticipated video game of all time?

  Would it a gamer's dream? Or a curse?

  Piper, a gamer and struggling artist has hit rock bottom. During a clinical trial, she is offered a second chance as she enters the most hyped game of the decade, Rookstorm. With the opportunity to win a life changing cash prize, she ventures to the vast open world where fantasy blends seamlessly with steampunk. But, not everything is like it seems, and Piper finds herself trapped in the brutal game with the other nineteen participants of the study.

  In the face of danger, death, and betrayal of those she loves most, Piper must soldier on to escape the unforgiving realm of Rookstorm.

  Contents

  Bluesource And Friends

  Chapter 0

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 0

  Announcer: In this world, you can test the very outcome of fate.

  Announcer: Behold, the things that are yet to come.

  Announcer: This isn’t real life anymore. Do not hold back.

  A swirling light filtered through Paulos' heavy eyelids. It had a glowish touch to it, almost like it was alive. Hundreds of thousands of fireflies could be gathering all around him. Everything was dark, but he could tell that his legs were planted firmly on the ground. Where he was, or what else existed beyond the dancing light, was completely unknown.

  What was that voice that he had just heard? He had never heard anything like it before. It was a thunderous growl that shook him to his core. Could it be that it was the voice of God booming down on him from the darkness of heaven still unseen to him? Even looking straight up, all he could see was darkness. His eyes were open, yes. Otherwise, the swirling lights would be imperceptible to him. The small particles continued to dance around him, but refused to illuminate anything beyond his vision.

  They were soft, whitish-blue, that sparkled in varying intensities—the opposite of his red LED lights on the digital clock sitting on his nightstand. It was the last thing he saw before drifting off to sleep. Now, he wasn't quite sure where he was, but he was there. Was he supposed to do something? His limbs felt heavy at first, but, like his eyes, they soon began to grow accustomed to the new environment.

  He moved a hand, then a leg, and finally, scratched behind his scruffy hair. That had been bothering him since the lights appeared, but he was too timid to scratch it. The earth beneath him felt perfectly still. It was hard, almost like concrete. He tried balancing his weight on one foot as if to walk, and to his great surprise, he perceived that he was moving. The swirling light followed him as he advanced through the plain blackness.

  Some game. When was it going to start? There was no menu, no UI, nor opening credits. The terrifying voice he heard was all that was offered in the way of user onboarding. Was it some bug in the system? Maybe the renderer was broken, and that's why the scene was all black. That would explain the emptiness of the whole thing, but it did not explain the light, which was still gently bouncing off his limbs and torso.

  “Hello?”

  He felt himself gaining confidence with each new step. He was still convinced that something was off with his game, and that he might bump into an unforeseen tree or rock at any second. But nothing happened.

  Do not hold back

  What was that supposed to mean? If nothing happened soon, Paulos figured he should just exit and read what other people were saying online about it. Probably a faulty system. But he didn't notice that his virtual legs were gaining speed. Or that he was in a full-blown sprint, with no indication that he was limited by physical attributes. No heavy breathing, no pain in the joints—just freedom to glide through the endless void.

  It was sort of enjoyable. There was nothing to stop him, and though he couldn't see where he was going, or if he was moving at all, he could still feel it. Something like a virtual wind cutting above his ears as he soared even faster. Then, he wasn't quite running anymore. He was gliding at increasingly fast speed, but his legs weren't moving.

  Oh, fuck, did I break something?

  The swirling lights shadowed his movements still. And he saw, for the first time, some semblance of physical geometry, as the last trailing particles of light struggled to keep up as he leaped through the air. So there was an actual ground after all. He could see the curve of his trajectory by looking down at the particles of light that moved at a lower velocity than the others.

  Nothing had happened yet. Maybe it was some black loading screen that lets you do crazy, improbable movements until the game loaded. Stranger things had happened before. A blinding light suddenly shone through his eyes. At first, he thought a particle had snuck underneath an eyelid, but the white light was everywhere. Looking down, he could see that the floor was outlined as a bare geometric matrix.

  Now I really broke it.

  He winced as the same booming voice from before filled his ears.

  Announcer: Ah, I believe this one has already chosen his fate.

  Announcer 2: Yes, it would seem so.

  Announcer: Shall we release this one to the material world?

  Announcer 3: One who chooses his fate is apt to one day change it.

  Announcer: So be it.

  Announcer: 2: So let it.

  Announcer 3: So will it.

  Wait. What?!

  Chapter 1

  Character Generation…

  Class inheritance...

  New Class Acquired: Null!

  New Skill Acquired: Fishing I!

  New Skill Acquired: Survival Cook I!

  New Skill Acquired: City Sleuth I!

  New Combat Skill Acquired: Swordsman I!

  New Combat Skill Acquired: Targeting I!

  Class Inheritance Complete

  Race Designation: Human

  Character Generation Complete!

  Generating World…

  World Generation Complete!

  “Out! Get out you filthy…!”

  “OUT
!”

  A terrible crashing sound startled Paulos and woke him from a deep slumber. The sounds came from the other side of the nearest building, presumably from a woman. He could perceive that he was laying back against a stone pillar beside some shade. Beneath him, the ground was made of stone, tiled in neat little squares. It looked uncomfortable, and yet somehow, he had been sleeping. He tilted his head upwards, and his eyes were met by the intersection of the shining blue sky, the gray of the pillar, and the building that lay beyond it.

  “I SAID OUT!”

  Paulos heard the frantic wailing of a cat, followed by more crashing sounds, and the yelling woman again. Uh oh. Wherever he was, they probably didn't like cats, which was a shame, because he was quite fond of them. The building next to him was painted a light pastel orange, complete with what looked like a straw roof—or at least, the outline of straw. He couldn't really see the roof from his vantage point. His eyes wandered further across the orange wall that he was facing, until he saw a sign that read “INN.” That made sense. The air smelled good, like something delicious was cooking inside.

  “If I see that mongrel feline one more time, I am going to kick it into the next town!”

  “Easy now, maw, it's just a cat.”

  “A cat that keeps going through our trash, and spreading its filth!”

  Paulos sobered up quickly after hearing the distinct voices of who were likely the proprietors of the inn. They didn't sound like pleasant people. But the air felt good around his face. Breezy. He stretched back against the pillar he was lying on, and slowly rose to his feet. A large wall ran down from the pillar as far as the eye could see: more buildings, a road, and the sound of children playing. It must have been a city, and quite a large one, too, from the sounds of things.

  A flickering red light brought his attention to just below his corneas.

  Status Report

  HP: 100/100

  MP: 20/20

  Energy: 100/100

  Thirst: 50/100

  Hunger: 25/100

  The hunger and thirst indicators flashed violently as the others disappeared. Paulos wasn't about to sit around and wait for the indicators to go down to zero. As soon as they were gone, he suddenly felt tired. He didn't quite feel hungry, but something was definitely off. Each step he took seemed like it could be his last.

  WARNING: Find something to eat!

  WARNING: Find something to eat!

  Hunger: 10/100

  That was quite a drop. Paulos reared his head towards the paved street, searching for any source of food. There was the inn, but he wasn't sure that he had any money. A fastidious search through his pockets confirmed this—there was not even one cent to his name. Maybe if he simply showed up at the door, the people at the inn would be nice enough to help him out.

  For the first time, he noticed that the sun was almost completely overhead. Noon. The piercing rays contributed to his sluggish movements, and he felt like he could pass out. Paulos forgot that he was playing a game, and felt a genuine urgency to get those indicators back to normal. But how? His heart rate went up precipitously as he failed to think about any options.

  Then, he noticed a collection of flies buzzing around what looked like old barrels. The impulse was automatic, and it led him towards the trash heaps without really paying attention to what he was doing. There was no scent component, which was probably the main reason why he didn't stop himself. But it was already too late. His gloved hands were searching through the refuse left by the patrons of the Inn.

  CONSUME: Trash (refuse); Hunger + 5

  CONSUME: Trash (refuse); Hunger + 5

  CONSUME: Trash (refuse); Hunger + 5

  MESSAGE: You don’t feel so well. You cannot eat more trash until the sickness passes.

  Hunger: 25/100

  Despite what the game was telling him, Paulos felt immediately better. Still a little sluggish, but not as much as before. The pause in between his feasting helped him realize that the indicators went up again. He was still feeling thirsty, though. He was about to round the corner and look for a public fountain, or something, when he felt something heavy hit the top of his head.

  BLUNT TRAUMA: HP - 5

  “AACK!”

  “Bum!”

  “Scoundrel!”

  “OUT!”

  It was the same woman from before, wielding a large straw broom. “Go on, get out! Leave! And don't come back here. I will get the authorities!” She shrieked menacingly, still brandishing the broom as if she would hit him again.

  “S-sorry!” said Paulos, jumping back several feet from the trash heaps. The woman charged towards him, broom first, causing Paulos to retreat hastily. Am I allowed to fight back? It dawned on him that he didn't have any weapons, nor any idea on how to use them. For now, it was better just to run. Running for his life felt strangely different from the mad dash to get his hunger indicator back up. Truth be told, the damage sustained from the broom wasn't significant. So why was he running? His health meter was still high, but now it seemed like he was running simply to get away from the marauding innkeeper.

  “I said OUT!” Came the screams from the innkeeper, still hell bent on chasing him away. Paulos occasionally glanced behind him, and every time, there she was. She had to be somewhere in her fifties from the look of things! Age probably didn’t matter in a virtual world like this one, though. Paulos knew that something was wrong. Was she really about to chase him through the city for eating from her trash? Her yells attracted the attention of onlookers, who turned their heads each time they zoomed by.

  STAMINA: Moderate output, Energy - 10

  The inn had long disappeared behind a lattice of houses, alleyways, and clearings. Paulos felt like running was natural for him. His feet gripped the uneven ground like they were made out of Velcro. Each stroke of his legs felt like powerful pistons banging against a stone. There was no way this lady was going to catch him.

  “THIEF!” Screamed the older woman at the top of her lungs. Thief? Wasn’t that a little bit harsh for someone who was just picking through her garbage? If anything, he was doing her a favor by helping get rid of some the putrid stuff. It dawned on Paulos that she might have simply mistaken him for somebody else. Judging by appearances only, he was wearing a thief's attire, black gloves, a dusty black poncho, and brown leather boots. He didn’t remember picking these items up either. It's simply what he spawned in.

  “GET HIM! GET HIM. THIEF!”

  Geez. One would think that he stole the lady's right foot. They were approaching a crowded marketplace, and it was obvious why the woman had risen her voice yet again. She was trying to get the attention of someone—anyone, who might be able to nip him in the back. But Paulos was determined to leave everyone behind him. At this point, it was pure adrenaline that was moving him. He completely forgot about his hunger indicators.

  He was headed straight for a fruit stall, when he heard the shouts of some locals telling him to stop. As he passed the stall, he grabbed whatever he could. It was a strange purple fruit with pointy spikes all over it. It looked like it might be yummy. “Stop him! Thief!”

  ITEM: Guka Fruit

  In hindsight, it probably wasn't a good idea to grab something when he was already on the run from something else. Now he really was a thief, and three men started after him. He could no longer see the angry Innkeeper or hear her shouts. Now I’m going to get it.

  STAMINA: Moderate output, Energy – 10

  Energy: 80/100

  WARNING: Get something to drink!

  Thirst: 20/100

  The last warning indicator was met with an immediate increase in body temperature. Heat stroke? He had seen a fountain in the middle of the marketplace, but it was obviously too late to go back. The only option was to keep pounding the stone floor beneath him, and hope for an opportunity to escape. But it would not come so easy.

  His pursuers were a level higher than the old batty woman with the broom. He couldn't tell if they were armed—but they were gaining on
him fast. His only option now was to somehow shave them off. Paulos thought quickly on his feet and started running towards a narrow alleyway, away from the large marketplace clearing.

  “This way! He went this way!”

  Paulos could feel the tips of his fingers grind against cold stone as he plowed down the narrow alleyway. The shouts from those men echoed against the tightly situated buildings, and it sounded like they were closing in from every direction. Paulos twisted his head to look behind him, and something caught him across the throat hard.

  CONCUSSIVE TRAUMA: HP – 15

  HP: 80/100

  “I got you, little mutt. What? Don't you struggle, boy! Don't you—”

  “YOW!”

  Paulos regained his composure and forcibly head-butted his captor on his face.

  CONCUSSIVE TRAUMA: HP – 5 (X 2 modifier)

  HP: 70/100

  The man gasped in pain as he clutched his eyeballs with both hands. Taking advantage of his dazed state, Paulos slipped behind another alleyway, and continued his flight. He could hear footsteps clamor around the man he just struck, presumably offering their assistance. It allowed him to gain additional distance on his pursuers, who seemed to have given up the chase, and were now attending to the man.